Tuesday, August 30, 2016

The Dutch, progressive rock band Focus are mainly known for their single
"Hocus Pocus," which cracked the top 10 on the U.S. charts. Since 2002,
they have numbered their albums and their latest studio album is titled
"Focus 8.5/Beyond The Horizon." It features seven instrumentals
performed by the members of Focus, along with an all-star line-up of
Brazilian musicians. Beginning with the 10-minute jazzy feel of "Focus
Zero," the song is led by Thijs van Leer's undeniable flute work as each
member of the band gets their moment to shine. The band digs deep into
the Latin groove of "Hola, Como Estas?" as the choral voices in the song
work together as another instrument. Focus also work that same idea of
using their voices to create a rhythm at the close of "Talking Rhythms."
They finish the album with the spiritually, uplifting, progressive
rock/jazz fusion of "Surrexit Christus." Focus have half-a-dozen dates
lined-up in the U.K. in October. For a complete list of live shows and
to find out more about their new release "Focus 8.5/Beyond The Horizon,"
please visit focustheband.com.

UK Progressive rock band Curved Air have been together, on and off,
since 1970 and have been touring together consistently for the past 8
years. Their latest release titled "Tapestry Of Propositions" is
special, since it only contains one song, with 15 variations of it. They
combined the many different improvisations that have been created
during live performances of the song "Propositions." Once lead vocalist,
Sonja Kristina introduces the songs, you are then taken on a journey,
showcasing some of the best live talent in the industry. The hour-long
instrumental piece was compiled and produced by Curved Air's keyboardist
Robert Norton. The flow of the music is seemless, as you'd only be able
to hear different variations of the sound with headphones on. To find
out more about this truly unique piece of music, please visit curvedair.com.

The instrumental progressive rock band Burnt Belief recently released
the third installment titled "Emergent" from their collaborative
trilogy. The duo of Colin Edwin (Porcupine Tree) on bass and Jon Durant
on guitar lead the way through the opener "The Bubble Bursts," while
drummer Vinny Sabatino lends his superior talents to "More Snow." The
trio take you on a sonic adventure with the nine-minute jazz-fusion of
"Emergent," while "Until The Stars Go Out" explores the landscapes of
sound as the subtle use of instruments showcase their effect. The new
eight-song release finishes with the ten-minute prog-rock build up of
"Turning Torso" led by Durant's amazing solos and the lighter, sweeping
tones of "Ghost Aquatic." To find out more about Burnt Belief and their
latest release "Emergent," please visit their Facebook page at facebook.com/BurntBelief.